'Palestinian Authority under Abbas is Anti-Semitic'

Minister Steinitz says Palestinian Authority is inciting its residents to annihilate the state of Israel.

By Gil Ronen

First Publish: 1/4/2014, 6:25 PM

Minister Yuval Steinitz

Flash 90

Minister for Strategic Affairs, Yuval Steinitz, said Saturday that the Palestinian Authority (PA), with which Israel is engaged in peace talks, does not really want peace.

Speaking at a live interview panel in Nes Tziona, Steinitz said: “We see the bitter incitement and the anti-Semitism of the Palestinian Authority under Abu Mazen (a.k.a. Mahmoud Abbas) as a primary obstacle on the way to an agreement. My impression is that Abu Mazen wants a Palestinian state, without peace, without security and without a real end to the conflict.”

Steinitz promised to raise the subject in Sunday's weekly cabinet session. “In tomorrow's session, I will present new and worrisome findings regarding the incitement index – the messages in the PA's educational system and television. According to these messages, there is a need – sooner or later – to destroy the state of Israel and drive out the Jews," he warned.

"When you examine the level of Palestinian incitement, you cannot avoid the conclusion that Abu Mazen wants a Palestinian state as another stage in the continued conflict with Israel," Steinitz added..

"I am not giving up,” he said. “We want to reach peace, but we must not ignore these things, because peace is not just a peace of paper.”